Module 5: Investigate your Local Cemetery
Where is it located?
Gate of Heaven Cemetery (East Hanover, New Jersey)
The cemetery is operated under the auspices of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Newark.
When did the cemetery start to operate?
It opened in 1937 and had 81,000 burials through 2002
100 of the cemetery's original 128 acres (0.52 km2) have been developed
Construction started in 1989 on Chapel Mausoleum, which was planned to include 10,000 crypts
How is it organized?
Something
Can you distinguish different kinds of tombs?
The our Lady of the Rosary Chapel Mausoleum features above ground marble entombment crypts, cremation niches and private family rooms
Cemetery plots, garden mausoleum spaces, columbaria (a permanent structure that houses cremated remains in niches, or spaces, for the purpose of reverence and public storage), and private family states are also available.
Did the location of the cemetery change over time? If yes, why?
Something
Can you see any changes in the commemoration of the deceased over time?
Something
Do the burials/tombs relate the social status of the dead? If yes how?
Something
